Excerpt: In the rush of life, we tend to lose touch with the peace that is available in each moment. These quotes from Peace Is Every Step will help…
“Those who are courageous, they go headlong. They search all opportunities of danger. Their life philosophy is not that of insurance companies. Their life philosophy is that of a mountain climber, a glider, a surfer. And not only in the outside seas they surf; they surf in their innermost seas. And not only on the outside they climb Alps and Himalayas; they seek inner peaks.”
Osho, Courage (Page 119)
What’s most interesting to me is how deeply connected both types of adventuring are. It is very similar to the connection between breathing in and breathing out. Adventuring on the outside is the expansion of the lungs—it is the breathing in of all that the world has to offer. Adventuring on the inside is the contraction of the lungs—it is the breathing out of all that you have inhaled and synthesized from your experiences. One leads to the other and the other leads to more of the one.
Read More »Osho Quote on Living With Courage and Exploring Both the Inner and Outer World
Excerpt: This short story about spilling coffee shares a powerful analogy that can help you better understand your temperament (and reactions) in life.
“The miracle is this: the more we share the more we have.”
Leonard Nimoy
Happy Thanks∙Giving. One of my favorite holidays where we give∙thanks. When you look closely at the name you’ll notice an important observation about thanks—it must be given. And from what I’ve learned about gratitude, I’d even go so far as to say that thanks is only real when it’s given. Thanks is not something that can be taken, nor is it something that can be arbitrarily absorbed. It isn’t something that manifests itself when we go through the motions of a feast or a gathering. And it isn’t something you just walk into. Thanks is something that must come through you.
Read More »Leonard Nimoy Quote on Sharing and the Miracle of Thanks∙Giving
Excerpt: Thanksgiving is going to look different this year—whether we want it to or not. But, different doesn’t have to mean worse. Here’s the mantra that I’m following to (hopefully) make things suck less.
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Maya Angelou
For as much as I work with quotes, you’d think I’d be better at remembering exactly what people said—I don’t. There are phrases, of course, that have stuck with me for one poignant or arbitrary reason or another, but I undoubtedly forget more than I remember. Heck, I can’t even quote myself for more than a few sentences! Think about the last time you tried to memorize a speech… how much of it could you memorize? Quoting is hard. People will (mostly) forget what you said.
Read More »Maya Angelou Quote on Legacy and What People Most Remember About You“We’re here to connect. Love, time, death. Now these three things connect every single human being on earth. We long for love, we wish we had more time and we fear death.”
Howard Inlet (Will Smith), Collateral Beauty
If I take a piece of paper and I draw a line down the center of it, you might say that it’s divided. You might say there is a left side and a right side. But, a simple line doesn’t change the fact that the sides are still part of the paper. They are not suddenly separate entities unto themselves—they are still a part of a whole. If I rip the paper down that line, you might say that the paper is now divided for sure. But, even if you were to rip the paper 1,000 times, each piece is still united in its essence—that it’s paper. From one perspective, division; from the other perspective, unity—even in the face of division.
Read More »Will Smith Quote from Collateral Beauty on How We’re Here to Connect.“Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality. No one can become fully aware of the very essence of another human being unless he loves him. By his love he is enabled to see the essential traits and features in the beloved person; and even more, he sees that which is potential in him, which is not yet actualized but yet ought to be actualized. Furthermore, by his love, the loving person enables the beloved person to actualize these potentialities. By making him aware of what he can be and of what he should become, he makes these potentialities come true.”
Viktor Frankl, Brain Pickings
For those who are trying to influence greatness in others I suggest this: don’t demand greatness; create the environment for greatness and let greatness flower as it may. Of course when you take the time to plant a seed, you want it to flower to its full potential—to become the greatest flower it has the potential to be. After all, you’re investing all of this time and energy into preparing its soil, watering it daily, protecting it from leaf-eating predators, and ensuring it has bountiful access to sunlight. Nobody wants to invest all of that time and energy into a seed that fails to flower to its full potential.
Read More »Viktor Frankl Quote on Influence and How To Nurture Greatness in Others
“Nothing great will ever be achieved without great men, and men are great only if they are determined to be so.”
Charles De Gaulle
To be great, at the very least—as a bottom-line minimum requirement—you have to decide to be great. And you can’t just want to be great—it has to be a decision. Deciding and wanting are not one and the same. To decide is to have made up your mind. It means you’ve reviewed all of the alternative options and consequences in your head and you’ve come to a conclusion. It represents a clear starting point that can be followed with clear and aligning actions.
Read More »Charles De Gaulle Quote on Being Great Only If We Are Determined To Be So
“Darkness cannot put out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Darkness is not something you battle. It’s not something you fight. It’s not something you can punch, kick, hit, push, shove, or choke. For darkness takes no form. It has no body. It takes no shape. It’s not something that will ever submit. Darkness is an absence—an absence of light. And the only way to combat an absence is with a presence.
Read More »Martin Luther King Quote on Light vs. Darkness and Love vs. Hate
Excerpt: A psychologist walks into a room of students and asks how heavy her glass of water is? The answer might surprise you…
“To me, to be blissful is the greatest courage. To be miserable is very cowardly. In fact to be miserable, nothing is needed. Any coward can do it, any fool can do it. Everybody is capable of being miserable, but to be blissful, great courage is needed—it is an uphill task.”
Osho, Courage (Page 60)
In our entire history we have never been more comfortable, more connected, and more safe than we are today and yet, happiness seems to be as far away as it ever has been. Why is that? Shouldn’t the technological advances, ease of access, and revolutions in connection increase our levels of happiness exponentially—or at least place it significantly closer? Intuitively speaking, it feels like they should, right? What gives?
Read More »Osho Quote on Bliss and How Effort is Required for Higher States of Mind“Reading can teach you the best of what others already know. Reflection can teach you the best of what only you can know.”
James Clear
And if you’re not doing either, where is it that everything you know is coming from? From social media? From click-bait websites? From news conglomerates? Or maybe from friends and family members? But, where then are they getting their knowledge from? From those same sources? The question you have to ask yourself is, how does the quality of this information compare to the quality of the information that might be obtained from reading and reflecting? I suspect that it may not only be substantially below in quality, but of little to no quality at all. I suspect that it’s a no comparison.
Read More »James Clear Quote on Learning and How Reading and Reflecting Hold the Keys To Knowledge
Excerpt: Your ego is holding you back from realizing your full potential in life. Read our 23 quotes from Ego is the Enemy to find out how.
“Stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach.”
Tony Robbins
This young man was told he wouldn’t be able to attend his Martial Arts tournament because he was exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19. He was told he would be quarantining at home for 2 weeks instead. But, rather than miss the tournament altogether, the team who orchestrated the tournament offered him and his family a virtual option instead. The family agreed.
Read More »Tony Robbins Quote on Staying Committed to Decisions, But Flexible in Approach“Four short words sum up what has lifted most successful individuals above the crowd: a little bit more. They did all that was expected of them and a little bit more.”
A. Lou Vickery
Doing what is expected of you is already a step ahead of many. Many people aren’t disciplined, focused, motivated, or committed enough to do even that—they fall short for various reasons. Whether it be bad habits, distractions, lack of will, or even just a carelessness—completing all of the tasks that are presented to them can be demanding enough. However, with the proper external motivations, systems, and consequences in place, most people can manage to do at least the minimum of what is expected of them and are usually good to settle with that. But, doing just what is expected of you isn’t what’s going to get you ahead.
Read More »A. Lou Vickery Quote on Going Above and Beyond and The Power of Marginal Gains“You cannot be truthful if you are not courageous. You cannot be loving if you are not courageous. You cannot be trusting if you are not courageous. You cannot inquire into reality if you are not courageous. Hence, courage comes first and everything else follows.”
Osho, Courage (Page xiii)
The good news is that courage can be learned—it’s not something that you either have or you don’t. It’s something that can be improved upon from whatever level it is currently at. Courage is not fearlessness. It is not an absence of fear. It is not only grand, heroic gestures and actions. Courage is simply the ability to act in spite of fear. And since everybody’s fear levels are different and everybody has exercised their “courage muscles” differently throughout their lives, everybody’s courage should be expected to be called upon differently as well.
Read More »Osho Quote on Courage and How Everything In Life Is Improved With It“The service we render to others is really the rent we pay for our room on this earth. It is obvious that man is himself a traveler; that the purpose of this world is not ‘to have and to hold’ but ‘to give and to serve.’ There can be no other meaning.”
Sir Wilfred T. Grenfell
How could the purpose of the world be ‘to have and to hold’ if nothing that we have and nothing that we hold onto will come with us at the end of our lives? It will all be left behind—every prized possession, every luxury, and every dollar. What could possibly be the purpose of hoarding it all from one part of the world to your part of the world? It will simply be hauled from your part, back, when you die. It seems futile when you really think about it.
Read More »Sir Wilfred Grenfell Quote on Meaning and How Service Is The Rent We Pay For Our Room On Earth“When you say no, you are only saying no to one option. When you say yes, you are saying no to every other option. No is a choice. Yes is a responsibility.”
James Clear, Blog
This goes out to everybody who has a hard time saying, “No.“ Sure, saying no can be hard when you’re talking to a friend, family member, coworker, or even acquaintance. I get it. You don’t want to let the people you care about down. You don’t want to disappoint or upset those who ask you for a favor. You don’t want things to get awkward. But, as Clear points out above, what’s important to understand is that saying yes isn’t free of consequence in itself. It means you are saying no to every other option instead.
Read More »James Clear Quote on Saying No and How To Get Better At Saying It“Your competition isn’t other people. Your competition is your procrastination. Your ego. The unhealthy food you’re consuming, the knowledge you neglect. The negative behavior you’re nurturing and your lack of creativity. Compete against that.”
Unknown
Your competition is your previous self. It always was and always will be. You can choose to compete against other people, but ultimately, it should only be used as a tool to better compete against who you were yesterday. What place you get or how you end up compared to others should always be mentally discarded.
Read More »Quote on How Your Competition Isn’t Other People—It’s You Versus You.